Belief: Reading makes you smarter

[steve]

I don't believe reading makes you smarter.

I know too many smart people who don't give a damn about books.

What say you?

[Moni12]

I'd say not, but maybe it makes you think more. I know that since I started studying Literature I've become more analytical toward what I read, see references to other works I haven't before, symbolism, images, etc. that may or may not have been intended.
This question actually reminded me of a Great Illustrated Classics copy of Oliver Twist I had when I was a kid. I was really little at the time and didn't realize until much later that it was abridged, but I read it over and over because it always made me feel smart for some reason. One of these days I have to get around reading the unabridged book.

[jkmcdonnell]

It won't make you smarter, but it can make you wiser.

[Watcher55]

“Smart” is what I call a watermelon seed word; it’s hard to pin down because it doesn’t mean the same thing every time you use it. In the sense we’re dealing with here it is related to, but not synonymous with intelligent. Intelligence speaks to capacity and ability. Smart has more to do with content and proclivity.

Intelligence is static, that’s why it’s (artificially) measured in terms of a quotient. How smart someone is defies measurement (don’t get me started on “achievement” tests). That being said, whether reading makes a person smarter depends largely upon what is being read and why. The smart gardener isn’t likely to get a subscription to SPORTS ILLUSTRATED (not a slam, just an example).

So I think that, yes, reading can make a person “smarter” but it can’t raise a persons “intelligence”.

As for “smart” people who don’t read, I can only say that reading isn’t the only way to increase content. It’s the difference between “book smart” and “street smart” (street smart doesn’t necessarily imply thug mentality. It refers to “where the rubber meets the road).

[sierramcconnell]

I wouldn't say so. I read a lot of things and yet I'm one of the dumbest people you'll ever meet. If you don't believe me, you should talk to me in person. I can say some of the most seriously stupid things. It's like "blonde" overload.

However, I'm a deep thinker and I'm very creative. I love making things up and telling stories.

But I am entirely ridiculous, I walk into walls and doors, and I laugh at myself when I go sliding (even though I usually don't fall, because of many years of practice doing just that).

[RachelHowzell]

I think it enhances your intelligence. I find that when I've been actively reading, I'm better at crosswords, for example. I'm also able to express myself more clearly, in both written and verbal forms. Plus, you get to visit all types of places, meet different people, learn about random things when you read. For instance, growing up as a little black girl in South Central Los Angeles, I would've never known about little Jewish girls growing up in attics during a war back in the olden days -- by reading Anne Frank's diary, though, I was introduced to different culture, a different life-experience, history, etc.

IMO.

[Guardian]

There is a huge difference between reading something and understanding something. Reading can make you "smarter" (Rather informative) in some cases, if you're capable to understand what the author wanted to say. But if you're reading and you can't understand the essence of the lines, it won't make you smarter at all (You may think you're smarter, but without understanding it, you won't be smarter at all.). There are two types of people; "book smart" and "street smart". The first is learning from lines, the second is learning mostly from personal experience. Each of them has an advantage and each of them has a disadvantage.

Although I must agree with Rachel. Reading can enhance your intelligence and make your mind sharper (If you're willing to, and capable to understand the lines.). But reading something is never equal with experiencing something. Being truly smart after reading books is rather an illusion, as there is no true background experience behind the gathered knowledge. But when you're reading a lot, but you're lack of true experience, you'll be something else; informative. And being informative is also good, but it's never equal with being smart.

It won't make you smarter, but it can make you wiser.

Exactly.

[JohnDurvin]

I know plenty of smart people that don't read books, but I don't know anybody that reads that isn't smart. (That's if we eliminate rubbish books, anyway.)